We kick off the show with a track a piece from top Sydney-based bands Dappled Cities, DMA’s and The Jezabels. Melbournite Alex Badham of Aleks and the Ramps is back with his new solo project Victory Lap and we debut his single ‘Afterlife’ on this week’s show. Also featured this week are new tracks from Perth’s psychedelic champions Pond and Apostate Son out of Auckland, NZ, Wares from Edmonton, AB and Raleigh from Calgary, AB.

This week we re-visit the sublime songwriting prowess of Grant McLennan and Robert Forster of The Go-Betweens. Following a string of sophisticated and critically acclaimed (but commercially negligible) albums the band called it quits, only to form for a further three albums, starting with ‘The Friends of Rachel Worth’. Some commentators have compared McLennan and Forster to the timeless Lennon/McCartney combo in the songwriting department. Have a listen to six tracks from the latter-period albums to see if this is an accurate comparison!

Today’s special guest is professional storyteller Naomi Steinberg. We’ve interviewed poets and other spoken word artists on the show before, but Naomi brings a whole new perspective on what it means to connect to the heart through the age-old technique of story-telling. Naomi speaks about the mentorship she received at the start of her story-telling journey, and the work she has done in the local arts scene. And Naomi has certainly found the right show to come in and chat on, as she is about to embark on a trip to Australia, in the cargo hold of a ship! Melbournites will be able to enjoy Naomi perform once she reaches the shores of Victoria.

Nunchukka Superfly is the long running side project of Blackie and Ray who are two thirds of the legendary Sydney-based punk band Hard-Ons. I recently re-discovered their sonically abrasive and wonderfully off-kilter 2006 record ‘There Are No Accidents Just F*ckwits’. You can hear a few tracks from this classic release on the show.

2013 was a big year for Australian music overseas with a strong SXSW contingent and notable tours. Courtney Barnett, Jagwar Ma and Pond have all been noted on England’s NME magazine end of year wrap-up. You can hear tracks from all three of these buzz acts on the show today. And we wrap up the show with tracks from the three finalists of Shindig 2013 – Zen Mystery Fogg, Skinny Kids and War Baby. Get on down to the Railway Club next Tuesday night if you’re an indie-music loving Vancouver local!

* Featuring tracks from the ‘To the Death 84’ release by Canadian metal band Voivod *

Voivod are a unique force in the world of heavy music. Forming in Northern Quebec in 1982, the band immediately discovered a dissonant hybrid speed metal/punk sound that formed the template for their extreme and demented sound for the next three decades. On today’s show you can hear two tracks from the original demo recording by Voivod which has long circulated in bootleg form before finally being issued on vinyl last year by the Alternative Tentacles label (also available through Vancouver distro Moloch Records). They’ve since record 13 albums that have incorporated thrash and progressive metal elements, and gone on to tour the world (I recall seeing them play second to last at a metal festival in Australia once). The track ‘Mechanical Mind’ is a taster of their forthcoming latest album release.

And welcome to 2013! On the show today I re-visit a couple of Australian artists’ releases from last year that I most admired – the powerhouse acoustic talent of young roots musician Kim Churchill who I had the good fortune to interview last year, and Pond from Perth, WA who were featured at last year’s SWSW Festival. And rounding out the show are two tracks from the new A.C Newman release and some recent tunes from Vancouver indie artists featured on the Safe Amp Society compilation of 2012.